Data center

ABSTRACT

This application relates to improvements to data centers, including protection from: (1) vandalism, (2) high winds, (3) earthquake, (4) storms, (5) water used for cooling or fire suppression, and (6) explosions emanating from inside or outside of the building.

This application claims priority from and the benefit of U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/458,044, filed on Mar. 28, 2003,hereby incorporated in its entirety by reference. FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] This application relates to improvements to data centers,including protection from: (1) vandalism, (2) high winds, (3)earthquake, (4) storms, (5) water or gas used for cooling or firesuppression, and (6) explosions emanating from inside or outside of thebuilding.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] A data center is a facility designed to house computer equipment(servers, routers, etc.) The computer equipment is used to store data,receive data from other computers and send data to other computerslocated inside and outside of the facility. The data is transmittedthrough copper and fiber optic transmission lines. In order for the datacenter to have a high level of reliability, all aspects of the design ofthe data center are important.

[0003] The physical security includes protection for: (1) electrical,mechanical, and computer equipment, (2) the power distribution system,(3) the copper and fiber optic distribution system, and (4) pipes andducts for the mechanical system.

[0004] The security system should provide protection from: (1)vandalism, (2) high winds, (3) earthquake, (4) storms, (5) water usedfor cooling or fire suppression, and (6) explosions emanating frominside or outside of the building.

[0005] The reliability of the design is enhanced by redundancy so thatif there is an equipment failure, another piece of equipment willfunction without delay to replace it. The reliability of the data centeris also improved by the compartmentalization of the design so that ifthere is an equipment failure, the impact of the failure is limited inscope. Reliability is also improved by having a design which makes afast recovery possible, such as a design which makes the quick and easyreplacement of the equipment (or a part within the equipment) possible.

[0006] The reliability of the design is also enhanced by having a designwhich attempts to eliminate a shut down because of a single point offailure. However, if there is a single point of failure, it is importantthat the component causing the failure is (1) very unlikely to fail, (2)the component can be replaced quickly if it does fail, and (3) theimpact of such a failure is limited.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] The design of the present invention incorporates the aspectsdescribed above (physical security, redundancy, compartmentalization,fast recovery, and the elimination of the “single point of failure”) inan effort to achieve the highest level of reliability.

[0008] The following discussion of the mechanical system, the powerdistribution system, and the fiber optic distribution system arepreferably in a building where the roof and outer walls are protected towithstand the impact of high winds or a blast from an explosive.However, there are aspects to the design which would be advantageous tobuildings without such protection. For example, the mechanical systemrequires less floor space.

[0009] In the description of the design that follows it is assumed thatthere are one or more corridors with rooms on both sides of thecorridor. (The design also applies if there are rooms on only one sideof the corridor or if computer racks are located in a single largeroom.)

[0010] Racks which hold computer servers are placed in the plurality ofrooms. It is necessary to supply these rooms with the following:

[0011] (1) Cooling to offset the heat generated by the servers and otherelectronic equipment.

[0012] (2) Electrical power to the electronic equipment.

[0013] (3) Fiber optic and copper lines to the equipment for thetransmission of data.

[0014] (4) Humidity control to the room to control static electricity.

[0015] (5) Fire suppression system which may include INNERGIN™breathable gas fire suppression system.

[0016] These and other objects of the invention, as well as many of theintended advantages thereof, will become more readily apparent whenreference is made to the following description taken in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017]FIGS. 1A and 1B show the design of a corridor space for mechanicalequipment, distribution of chilled water to mechanical equipment,location of electric cable which supplies power to the powerdistribution units (PDUs) which are connected to servers, and fiberoptic lines which are connected to the servers located in the rooms.

[0018]FIG. 1C is an alternate design of a distribution system, similarto FIG. 1A.

[0019]FIG. 2 shows a plan view of air handling units (AHU) in thecorridor and the ducts which supply the rooms on each side of thecorridor.

[0020]FIGS. 3A and FIG. 3B show a plan view and vertical section of anAHU.

[0021]FIGS. 4A and 4B show a vertical section and a plan view,respectively, of a six foot wide and eight foot high (or higher) centralcorridor and lateral room enclosures.

[0022]FIG. 5 shows a plan view of AHUs assigned to four different roomconfigurations.

[0023]FIG. 6 is a plan view of a piping diagram with a third pipeprovided for maintenance or replacement of either one of the other twopipes.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0024] In describing a preferred embodiment of the invention illustratedin the drawings, specific terminology will be resorted to for the sakeof clarity. However, the invention is not intended to be limited to thespecific terms so selected, and it is to be understood that eachspecific term includes all technical equivalents which operate in asimilar manner to accomplish a similar purpose.

[0025] A space 12 (FIG. 1A) is located above the corridor 1 between thefoil coiling unit (FCU) or Air Handling Unit (AHU) 8A having a coil 80,a fan 82 and filter 84 (as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B). Between the walls3A, 3B is a ceiling tile and grid system 11 of the corridor sufficientto provide the required return air to the AHU in space 12.

[0026] A plurality of individual FCUs could be replaced by a large FCUlocated at ground floor level which would blow cool air into a ductedsystem 73 going down the space where AHU 8A is located between walls 3A,3B, ceiling roof 12 and tile and grid system 11.

[0027] Below the raised floor 13 of the corridor 1 there is a space 15,FIG. 1A, through which pipes can be located and connected to the risersin the walls or to a pipe connected to an AHU located on a raised flooror concrete deck (see FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B). Also, connecting pipesextend from the chilled water supply pipe 16 and chilled water returnpipe 18, FIGS. 1A and 1B.

[0028] In the alternative the fiber optic trays 61A, 61B and cylindersfor the fire suppression system 51A and 51B can be located above themezzanine deck 12 on both sides of the corridor 1 as shown in FIG. 1Aand 1C. In FIG. 1B pipes cross the corridor 1 and are connected torisers which are located in corridor walls 3A and 3B. FIG. 1A alsoincludes a condensate opening 55 from a pipe extending down a wall forthe AHU.

[0029]FIG. 1B shows the staggered connections 19 from the chilled waterreturn (CWR) pipe 16 to the riser 3A and from the chilled water supplypipe 18 to the riser 3A. FIG. 1B also shows fiber optic line 21 from theconduit extending to the conduit box 23A passing through the conduit tothe riser 24 and into adjacent room 5. This fiber optic line extendsinto adjacent room 5 from the risers in the wall. The fiber optic line23C, FIG. 1B, is for the room 4 across the corridor from room 5.Cylinder 51B, FIG. 1B, is for fire suppression for room 4.

[0030]FIG. 1A shows a roof structure 12 which spans the corridor and therooms 4 and 5 on both sides of the corridor 1. The space above the roofstructure 12 and below building roof 90 is referred to as the mezzaninedeck and above the mezzanine deck is the main roof 90 of the building.There is limited access to the mezzanine deck. Motion detectors andclosed circuit television monitors provide continuous surveillance. Themezzanine deck also serves as a secondary roof to protect against roofleakage from the primary roof 90. Roof structure slope 12 is a 1) blastprotection, 2) secondary rain protection and 3) covering for fiber andelectrical distribution cylinders.

[0031] The corridor walls 3A and 3B enclose the sides of the corridor.Below the roof structure 12, conduits 6 carry the power cable from theuninterrupted power supply (UPS) units to the power distribution units(PDU) and then to each room, e.g. rooms 4 and 5, for powering lightingand critical load including servers, routes, etc., where the servers inracks 7 (FIG. 2) and other electronic equipment are placed.

[0032] The AHU 8A, FIG. 1A, is located below the conduit 6. The AHU 8Aabuts corridor wall 3A, and supplies cool air to the room 5 through thesupply air grill 9. The return air transfer grill 10 permits air toreturn from room 5 to the AHU 8A. The ceiling tile and grid system 11along with the walls 3A and 3B, the corridor 1, the space below the AHUand the space between the fan coil units (FCU) create a return air spacewhich is required for the cooling unit.

[0033] The cooling capacity of the AHU is determined by the size of themotor and fan, the cooling capacity of the coils, and the volume of airthat can be returned to the AHU. The volume of air that can be returnedto the FCU is determined as shown in FIG. 3A by calculating the volumeof air available in the space between the bottom of the structure andthe top of ceiling tile and grid system 11 and the width of the space,from center to center, between the air handling units.

[0034] The condensate drain 55 is located at the bottom of the corridor.The condensate drain drains any water that gets into the corridor. Thereis a small space 56 between the corridor walls and the raised floor toallow for any water that gets into the corridor to drain.

[0035]FIGS. 4A, 4B show a vertical section and a plan view section,respectively, of a corridor 6 feet wide and approximately 8 feet or morehigh from the ceiling grid 11 to the floor 17. A four ton FCU 8A islocated between the power conduits 6 and the ceiling tile and gridsystem 11. There are six racks 16 in room 4 in FIGS. 2, 4A, 4B and 5.Typically, each rack, in this example, requires 20 amps at 120 volts(120V×20A=2400 watts =2.4 KVA) (1 ton =12,000 BTU) (heat of 1 KVA =3416BTU) (2.4 KVA requires 8116 BTU). One ton of cooling will therefore cool1 ½ racks.

[0036] Therefore, the six racks at 20 amps per rack in room 4 eachrequire four tons of cooling. The FCU in FIG. 1A is a four ton unit.This unit is 48 ½ inches on the side and 24 inches across the front (thesupply register side).

[0037] Two of these units are shown in FIG. 5, designated for room 4 andtwo of these units are shown designated for room 5. Rooms 4 and 5 eachhave available two, four ton units for a total of eight tons. Thisequates to full redundancy if each rack is using only 20 amps at 120volts. If each rack is using 40 amps then in the event of a failure ofone of the AHUs, a fast recovery is necessary.

[0038] The components in an AHU are a motor 86 connected to a fan 82 anda cooling coil 80. These components have a low failure rate and can bequickly replaced if the unit has valves for the quick removal of thecooling coil and replacement parts for the motor. Extra fans and coolingcoils are kept on hand. In addition, monitoring of the temperature inthe room and monitoring of the other parts should alert personnel toprojected failure to minimize the impact of such a failure.

[0039]FIG. 5 shows a top view of the AHUs assigned to rooms 4, 5, 6 and7. The arrows show the direction of the air through the units. If eachof the units is four tons then eight tons are assigned to each room.

[0040] The rooms can be subdivided by a wall 71 into two rooms, e.g.,see FIG. 5, rooms 7A and 7B. In that case, each room could have eitherone or two, four ton AHUs. If each room is not so subdivided, shown tobe approximately 10 feet×16 feet (including partitions) and ifsubdivided the two rooms would each be approximately 5 feet×16 feet andeach room could have assigned to it one, four ton AHU. FIG. 5 shows thatwhen rooms 4 and 6 are combined by removal of wall 72, sixteen racks areplaced in the space (an increase of four racks).

[0041] As shown in FIG. 5, room 5 has six racks. Two KVAs can besupplied to each rack with one four ton AHU. With two, four ton units toeach room, 10 feet×16 feet four KVAs can be supplied to each rack or thesecond two ton unit can be used to supply A.C. “back up” for the room.

[0042] The building is surrounded by bollards 50 at a standoff distanceof a minimum of 90 feet from the building. Examples of bollards 50 areshown on one side of the building only in FIG. 5. It is understood thatthe bollards 50 would surround the building.

[0043] The bollards are built to the highest Department of Defense (DOD)standard. At that standoff distance, the buildings will withstand ablast from 1000 pounds of TNT on a 5000 pound truck moving at 50 milesper hour. The brick exterior of the building is backed up by 12 inchreinforced concrete masonry unit (CMU) with grout in the CMU cavities.The interior walls of the rooms are built of 8 inch and 12 inch CMUswhich are reinforced with steel bars and the CMU cavities are filledwith grout. The mezzanine deck 12 is built of steel and concrete so thatthe interior of the building is protected against blast.

[0044] The building is built in a highly secure manner. This physicalsecurity provides security to the AHU, the power distribution units, theuninterruptible power supply, the batteries, the switch gear, thecomputers, routers and other electronic equipment, the powerdistribution system, the fiber distribution system, the copperdistribution system (for data), the chilled water supply and returnpipes, the fire suppression system and all the other equipment protectedby the walls and roof of the building.

[0045] The system disclosed herein is appropriate for a buildingdesigned and built to the concept disclosed for a building converted toa data center. For instance, a building with an interior space 22 feetin height can have an additional mezzanine floor added to accommodatethe tanks for a fire suppression system and the electrical and fiberdistribution system described herein.

[0046] In an existing building, preferably, existing or new constructionwould have a roof sloping at a 2% grade to help carry off rainwater. Themezzanine deck may be built parallel to the existing roof (i.e., thesame slope) approximately 5 feet below the existing roof and can bebuilt of steel and concrete (a composite deck). Twelve inch steelreinforced concrete masonry units can be added to the inside of thebuilding perimeter and shear walls can also be built of twelve inch CMU.The bollards, the secondary roof, the exterior walls and the shear wallswill protect the building against the blast described above.

[0047] The rooms for the servers may also be built of reinforced CMU.This will give the equipment in these rooms further protection against asatchel charge in the interior or near the exterior of the building. Theconcrete slab of the existing building can be cut and a trench built sothat the chilled water pipes and fiber optic could be installed.

[0048] The cylinders for the gas fire suppression may be placed on thesecondary roof directly above the rooms that will receive the gas in theevent of a fire or in the trench below the raised floor as shown in FIG.1A and 1B. In either case, the gas will be confined to the room forwhich it is designated which gives additional protection against puttingtoo much gas into the room.

[0049] The chilled water supply pipes are designed so that valves may beclosed which prevent water from flowing through them. The water can bedrained from them and then a leak can be repaired. When these valves areclosed, other valves can be opened which are connected to a “back up”supply line as shown in FIG. 6 so that the air handling unit stillreceives chilled water. A similar piping system would be used for thereturn chilled water system. The same back-up pipe can be used for boththe return and supply chilled water system if similar valves are closedand opened.

[0050]FIG. 6 which shows 14 inch chilled water supply 100 and return 102from the pump room 104. 4 inch chilled water supply 106 and return 108lines are then connected to the 14 inch chilled water lines to serverooms 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9. An additional 4 inch pipe 110 is placed ineach corridor to take the place of any section which is closed off byvalves so that section can be repaired. See valves V in FIG. 6.

[0051] The preferred configuration of this data center design willprovide that (1) the electrical distribution to the racks and PDU roomswill be located between the AHU 8A and the mezzanine deck 12 and abovethe mezzanine deck 12, in a secured steel tray attached to the deck witha space for the flow of water if there is a leak in the primary roof.(2) The fire suppression system will be provided by INNERGIN™ gaslocated in cylinders located above the mezzanine deck and above thespace being protected. (3) The chilled water supply and return pipeswill be located in the corridors below the raised floor in a trench 5with a drain beneath these pipes and a water tight separation to theadjacent rooms. (4) Racks located in a small room will receiveconditioned air from an AHU in the corridor. (5) Rack in large roomswith a heavy A.C. load will have the AHU on a raised floor with thesupply air moving under the raised floor to the racks. (6) The bollards,the walls of the building and the shear walls and the mezzanine deck andthe primary roof structure will provide protection against blast to thehighest Department of Defense standards.

[0052] The chilled water pipes, fiber and electrical conduit can belocated in a trench in the corridor and the top of the raised floor 13can be level with the concrete slab 60 adjacent to the corridor (seeFIG. 1A). In the alternative, FIG. 1C, the space 15, can be locatedbetween the walls 3A and 3B, the raised floor 13 and the slab 60. Inthat case, the raised floor 13, would be located on each side of thecorridor walls. In that case, the rooms on each side of the corridorwould have raised floors and the supply ducts 73 shown in FIG. 2 wouldhave a vertical section so that the supply air would be extended down inthe corner of the room so that the supply air would pressurize the spacebelow the raised floor, and the cold air could then be supplied belowthe racks 7 in FIG. 2.

[0053] There is sufficient space above the mezzanine that the fiberoptic lines can be laid out so that they do not cross the powerdistribution lines. The power lines which are intended to be droppedthrough the mezzanine deck to the cage below would be located at thefront of the cage and the fiber lines would be located at the rear ofthe cages.

[0054] Some other advantages of the design are:

[0055] 1. The electric power and the fiber are kept more than therequired distance apart.

[0056] 2. The fiber and low voltage copper data lines are located in asecure space below the raised floor, or above the mezzanine deck. Ineither case, it can be secured in a steel tray with a locking device anda monitoring device for surveillance.

[0057] 3. The fan coil units do not require room floor space. Thisraises the efficiency of the use of the floor area of the building.

[0058] 4. In addition to providing security against blast, the secondaryroof provides redundancy with respect to protection from roof leaks andan excellent place to run additional fiber and power.

[0059] 5. A normal duct system in the corridors which are then connectedto the rooms can be tapped so that conversations in the rooms could beheard by those not intended to be privy to such conversations. Thechilled water system described herein is not subject to such intrusion.

[0060] 6. This design is intended to meet federal security (SCIF)requirements.

[0061] The foregoing description should be considered as illustrativeonly of the principles of the invention. Since numerous modificationsand changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is notdesired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operationshown and described, and, accordingly, all suitable modifications andequivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of theinvention.

I claim:
 1. A data center comprising: a building, an explosionprotection system surrounding the building, a primary roof of thebuilding, a secondary roof inside the building forming a mezzanine deck,said mezzanine deck being located below said primary roof and spanningan interior of the building, an air handling unit located below saidmezzanine deck and above a floor of the building, and a distributionsystem for water and communication lines being located below the floorof the building.
 2. The data center as claimed in claim 1, wherein thebuilding includes a plurality of rooms interconnected by a corridor. 3.The data center as claimed in claim 2, wherein the distribution systemis located below the corridor.
 4. The data center as claimed in claim 3,wherein a ceiling of the corridor defines a space located below themezzanine deck, the air handling unit is located in the space.
 5. Thedata center as claimed in claim 2, wherein a plurality of air handlingunits are connected to each of the rooms to provide at least two timesof air cooling capacity to each of the rooms in the event of failure ofone of the air handling units.
 6. The data center as claimed in claim 1,wherein the explosion protection system includes a plurality of bollardssurrounding the building.
 7. The data center as claimed in claim 1,wherein condensate from the air handling unit is communicated to thedistribution system.
 8. The data center as claimed in claim 1, whereinthe distribution system further includes a five suppression system. 9.The data center as claimed in claim 1, wherein the distribution systemfurther includes a chilled water supply line and a chilled water returnline.
 10. The data center as claimed in claim 9, wherein the chilledwater supply line and the chilled water return line are connected byvalves to a bypass water line for use in the event of maintenance orfailure of one of the chilled water supply line and the chilled waterreturn line.